I hope you guys enjoy this - contains unsettling issues on abuse/rape

"Jeez Gray, anyone would think you're trying to make Sting drop dead right there and then with the way you keep glaring at him like that" Lucy frowned at her friend's clearly unpleasant expression. She huffed and took a bite of her sandwich. "You're not the only one who doesn't like Sting and Natsu being together, y'know".

"That bastard doesn't deserve him" Gray growled. "Natsu needs to get himself outta there while he still can. But no, he chooses not to. Stupid moron..." He mumbled and near enough violently ripped a slice of ham in shreds with his teeth, chewing as if he was chewing on a wasp.

"Sting isn't the greatest guy, we all know that, but seriously dude you're acting like you're jealous of their relationship" Loke commented from where he sat beside Lucy.

"Why the hell would I be jealous of that?" Gray half-snapped. "I'm very happy and content in my own relationship, thanks!"

Loke flinched and held up his hands in surrender. "Never said you weren't! But good God Gray, anyone who didn't know you would think your heart beats for Natsu and not Lyon".

"Did you have to word it that way?" Lucy nearly cringed. Sometimes her boyfriend was an idiot. And more often than not, an embarrassment.

Gray huffed. "Look, even if I wasn't with Lyon like I am, I'd still be this way about Sting. He could've just gotten with Rogue! At least Rogue likes him in that way".

Lucy's chocolate eyes widened a little. "You're saying Natsu doesn't love Sting? How do you know?"

"Because Natsu has always liked Gray, that's why" Came a voice from behind.

Gray looked up, feeling his heart warm with a fuzzy feeling. "Lyon, hey" His expression softened as his boyfriend took the empty space beside him and Gray noted he had no lunch with him meaning he must've eaten with his other group of friends today. "How did you know Natsu likes me?"

"Because the day I asked you out in the halls after that one Chemistry class, I saw him witness it pretty much. As guilty as I felt when I saw him, it wasn't until you accepted my offer that I realised why he was looking for you. But..."

"But then it was too late to take back what you said, huh..." Gray sighed. He pushed his lunch aside, having lost what little appetite he already had and leant against Lyon. "This isn't fair... I don't love Natsu like that, but I know he's not happy with Sting either. I don't want him hurt..."

"Don't start blaming yourself," Lucy reached over to pat her friend's wrist gently. "You didn't know, and like you said - you love Lyon, not Natsu. You can't help the way you feel about someone".

"She's right, Gray. You can't beat yourself up about something you never knew".

Gray didn't reply. He kept himself pressed against Lyon and held his hand on his knee. Lyon shifted to wrap his arm around his shoulders and sighed softly. Gray lazily shifted his eyes across Lyon's chest to fix them back on his current problem. He could see Natsu sitting forcibly between Sting and Rogue on the other side of the lunch field. Today was a rare summer day when the weather was good enough for the students to eat outside. Sting was laughing loudly with his cronies but Gray caught Natsu quickly glance over at him before he swiftly turned away. Gray felt a pang in his chest and nuzzled Lyon's shoulder lightly with a sigh.

"Can I come over to your place after class? I don't feel like going home to an empty house today".

Lyon nodded. "Sure, no problem. What's your final class? I'll meet you".

"Stupid History aka the most boring subject to ever exist" The bell rang loudly across the school grounds and Gray huffed. "You know my teacher, right?" He asked as the group stood.

"Yep, noted. I'll see you later then, have fun" Lyon kissed his cheek and walked off back to his other friends across the grassy area while Gray just muttered something sarcastic under his breath.

"So why did you ask me out after Chemistry that day?" Gray suddenly asked Lyon on their walk back to Lyon's house. Their walk had been somewhat silent between them aside from the brief greeting they exchanged when Lyon met Gray outside his History classroom. He had been thinking about it for some time. "That was our final class that day, and I'd definitely seen you in a class before that and we spent break and lunch together".

"Easy. I could've asked you earlier that day, sure, but I kinda wanted to use that winning pickup line on ya" Lyon grinned proudly and Gray rolled his eyes as he remembered.

"Hey guess what I just realised. What? You and I happen to have chemistry together" Gray repeated and pretended to cringe. "God, you're such a cringe-worthy dork sometimes" He would've facepalmed had one hand not been holding the strap on his rucksack to keep it from slipping off his shoulder and the other having been clasped together with Lyon's, their fingers laced together.

"Heh, it still worked because you said yes!"

"Ouch, your ego is so blinding right now it's literally putting some light into my soul".

"Oh ha ha, hilarious. What's with you this afternoon? Don't tell me you're still pissed with Sting".

"No, I'm not" Gray sighed. "I just... I guess I'm just having an off day today, that's all. I'll be fine tomorrow, you'll see. We're still on, right?"

"Course we are. We've been planning this trip for months! Although it feels more like years from the amount we've managed to save up".

"I can't wait - two solid weeks free of classes and homework and just having that time to ourselves. Did you tell anyone where we're going?"

Lyon shook his head. "No. Knowing my lot, they'd follow us. What about you?"

"Same in all honesty. I love my friends but jeez, sometimes they turn into stalkers. Like, actual stalkers. It's nuts".

"You're telling me. Remember when you had that family vacation but nobody believed you so Lucy sent Loke to follow you there and see if it was true or not?"

"Hahaha! That was kinda funny though, but still true". Before they knew it, they'd arrived at Lyon's house. "Wow, that was quick, don't you think? We even took the longer route".

They let go of one another's hand reluctantly so that Lyon could dig out his key and let them inside. "Didn't anyone ever tell you that time flies when you're having fun?" Lyon teased before Gray growled playfully and chased him indoors with the door firmly shutting behind them both.

Gray trudged back home later that evening, having stayed at Lyon's for dinner after his father had rung and said he'd be late home. Gray hadn't minded. Lyon's parents could be strict but once they got used to someone, they felt near enough like family. They hadn't been too fond of Gray when he and Lyon had only been kids, and had at first disapproved of their relationship even more so. But one day Lyon had snapped and had a shouting match with his father in defence of just how much he loved Gray and wanted to be with him. Gray had helpfully backed up his argument and Lyon's father had backed down on the subject and left them to it.

Gray knew that deep down he had only been afraid of Lyon getting his heart broken. Gray's father had been the same when he'd first told him the news. Gray had promised both of their families that he nor Lyon would ever hurt one another. Although they hadn't been together for longer than two years, Gray knew and felt in every inch of his heart that Lyon was...well, the one - as some put it. He believed that he was his soulmate, special someone, other half, whatever you wanted to label it as. Lyon was...true.

Gray couldn't help but bit his lip as he grinned to himself during his walk. They'd had their own disagreements and had even had one or two fights which led to a few days of not speaking to one another, but they had never broken up. Because they understood that sometimes there would be times when they wouldn't want or need one another's company or support. As much as he hated it when that kind of stuff did happen, he was happy. And that's all that mattered to him.

Until he'd found out about Natsu's feelings...and especially until he'd been informed of Natsu and Sting's new relationship.

"Ow!"

Gray stopped dead at hearing a shout interrupt his thoughts and he turned his head to see the silhouette of someone having fallen in the alley. He moved a little bit to try and get a better look at who it was but the alley was too dark for him to see properly. He then took out his phone and shone his torch light from it onto the ground, trailing up and shining the bright light on the silhouette.

"Natsu...?" Upon recognising his friend's pink hair, Gray moved closer and knelt down beside him, carefully helping his friend to sit up and even lean on him slightly. He put his phone down just in front of him with the torch light still on so he could look Natsu over. What he found was one pinkette covered in bleeding cuts and bruises. He looked awful and in a terribly bad state. Gray felt his stomach tie in knots at the sight. "Jesus Christ, what happened to you?!"

Natsu peeked up at Gray with red, puffy eyes. One of them had a darkening bruise which he then closed with a wince. The pinkette said nothing at first, just shifting comfortably against Gray for support and trying to stop what seemed to now be an endless flow of tears. When Gray asked where Sting was - saying the blond's name like he was tasting something bad - he was surprised when Natsu only cried harder, going as far as to bury his face into his neck. Gray wrapped his arms around Natsu carefully and rocked him a little bit.

"He hurt me..." Natsu's pained whisper caught Gray off guard slightly. He looked downward at the way Natsu was curled against his chest, clutching tightly to his shirt and his eyes shut tight but tears still spilling down his cheeks. "He's always hurt me...b-but tonight was the worst it's been..."

Sting had been hurting Natsu? The bastard was going to get it! "What's he been doing?" Gray's expression darkened, his head dipping so his fringe fell over his eyes like a shadow.

"He beats me mostly... He'll often force me to go back to his after school - to cancel any plans I might have, even with family - and he'll just get frustrated at anything and beat me to vent, I guess... H-He just gets so angry and there's nothing I can do but take the pain b-because there's no time to get away. My fractured arm a few months ago? That was him..."

"Natsu...you need to get out of there. You can't stay with him if he's just using you as a...a-as a punching bag! Behaviour like that? That's not loving someone at all..."

"I-I know..." Natsu huddled closer to his friend. "I never wanted this Gray. I never wanted to be with him. B-But he caught me at a vulnerable time because I was upset and trying to move on from you and I just took what I could get... It was a stupid mistake and I'm scared Gray... I'm scared about what he'll do to me next. After tonight's incident, I wouldn't be surprised if he tried to kill me..."

"Not on my watch," Gray's voice was firm and fierce. Protective. "He won't hurt you again. He won't even go near you, maybe not even look at you when I get my hands on him. ...What did he do tonight?"

Natsu suddenly began shaking, and it was then that Gray noticed how ripped - no, shredded - his clothes were. His skin felt frozen. Gray shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around his friend's shoulders while keeping him close against himself hoping it would keep his friend somewhat warm. Natsu nuzzled him gratefully. He didn't let go of Gray's shirt.

"Tonight..." Natsu's voice was quieter again. "...he forced me into sex. Because I told him exactly what you said; that he didn't love me and that I didn't love him either! Th-That our whole relationship was fake from the moment it started and...I hated it. I hated every second of it, Gray! It hurt so much, being my first time too... It's made me to never want sex again with anyone, ever. He made me do so much I didn't want... And the whole time all I could think about was how I wished it was you...because I know you would never be like that with me..."

His words made Gray's emotions conflict between pain and anger. He was infuriated with how Sting had treated Natsu. Yet he was pained by Natsu's thoughts of him. He felt guilty. That this had happened all because he hadn't known about Natsu's feelings until he'd accepted and returned Lyon's. He wrapped his arms tighter around Natsu and gently kissed his head in apology. He saw his phone flash on the ground from underneath the device and knew it was most likely either his father asking where he was or Lyon asking if he'd gotten home safe.

He sighed and picked up his phone to look. Lyon. For once he didn't feel his heart begin to race or feel lighter than air at seeing his name. Instead, he felt tears prick at his eyes and his breath hitched in his throat. That alerted Natsu. The pinkette in his arms looked at his friend's pained face and frowned as he, too, had seen Lyon's name on the screen.

"Gray...call him. Tell him you're okay" When Gray didn't respond in any way, Natsu sighed. "You know why I never told you how I felt even though you were already with Lyon by the time I next saw you? Because I saw how much happier you were with him. You can say that I would've made you happy too but not like he does. I've known you for pretty much as long as he has and I can tell that nobody could ever make you as happy as he does. It's obvious to anyone that he's the love of your life - he's a lucky guy. You love him just as much, right?"

"I do... He's the one, Natsu... He's the one I want to spend the rest of my life with... I wanna marry him someday... Take his name as my own... Live with him... All that sort of stuff" He lifted one hand to cover his eyes. "Christ...we're going away together tomorrow for the first time by ourselves but this has happened to you and I... I don't know what to do..."

"Go and enjoy your vacation," Natsu said simply. "I'll be alright, trust me. I-I can go stay with Lucy or Loke or something. Gray, trust me".

"But-"

"No. You're going to go away with your boyfriend tomorrow and freaking enjoy it, okay?" Natsu pried Gray's hand away so he could hold his gaze. "You deserve this".

"But you don't deserve this" Gray retorted. "Lyon and I can just go on vacation together some other time - it's not as if we've booked a hotel and flight or something".

Natsu shook his head firmly. "You're an idiot. Honestly, I'll be fine. I'm gonna go home and tell my dad, he'll then ring the police probably and they'll hopefully arrest Sting and I'll be okay. I'll mend, you know me, tough as steel or whatever the saying is".

"But how am I supposed to enjoy being with my boyfriend knowing what's happened to my best friend? And yes, you are still my best friend despite not having spoken to me in forever because of him. If I'd known that you felt how Lyon does beforehand then...then..."

"You still would've chosen Lyon over me, Gray. Because he's the one you love and I'm not. You said yourself; he's the one you want to spend the rest of your life with. This is hard for the both of us, but we'll make it through. You and me. Just like we always have".

Gray had to smile a little at that. He shuddered out a sigh and helped Natsu stand, picking up his phone and leading them both to stand beneath a streetlight. Gray turned his phone's torch light off and put it in his pocket. He'd have a late night call with Lyon when he got settled in bed.

"Want me to walk you home?" He offered.

"Please".

Natsu smiled at him and the two began to walk to Natsu's house where they then parted with Natsu sweetly giving Gray a kiss on the cheek in thanks for supporting him in his time of need. Gray then trudged back home, finally. He explained to his father briefly what had happened but leaving out the details of Natsu having practically been raped - instead he'd told him that he'd found Natsu beaten by some bullies from school. A close enough comparison in his haste to just lock himself in his room for the night and talk to Lyon.

Gray felt like his heart was going to explode again as he walked through the school grounds. He headed to the usual meeting spot on the playground where his friends were and bit his lip to stop the squeak he could feeling creeping up. He had one hand curled into a loose fist, fiddling with something. He raised his other hand in greeting as he approached Lucy, Loke and Natsu.

Wait, Natsu was with them?

He looked over his shoulder toward where Sting's group would usually stand before the registration bell rang. Rogue was there with the rest like usual, but he couldn't see Sting with them. He then turned back to only have Natsu crash into him with a firm hug.

"He's gone!" He exclaimed with an ecstatic grin that Gray hadn't seen in a long time and smiled fondly back at. He returned his friend's hug and that's when Lucy and Loke gasped in unison.

"OH MY GOD NO WAAAY!" Lucy squealed and Natsu reeled back to see what had her react in such a way.

Everyone's eyes followed to where Lucy was pointing with a hand over her mouth and Gray blushed profoundly. On his finger was a bright, shiny engagement ring. Lucy squealed again in excitement and started hopping from foot to foot in glee and shaking Loke's shoulders excitement. Natsu patted his friend on the shoulder in congratulations.

"I take it you told them then?"

Gray smirked at Lyon and moved back to stand at his side and then draw him into a kiss. "Actually, they just saw the ring when Natsu hugged me. But I was thinking of revealing it after Chemistry today, final period" He chuckled when Lyon ruffled his hair playfully.

"This is so cute. This is too cute you guys!" Lucy couldn't help but wrap her arms tightly around Loke's neck.

Gray hugged Lyon around his own neck on a less tightening scale while Lyon slipped his arms around Gray's waist in return. Natsu just folded his arms across his chest but Gray could see only pride in his green eyes rather than pained jealousy. Natsu was happy for him, and it erased any unease he'd had. Natsu then chuckled.

"Looks like your vacation turned out better than you thought, huh? Finally gonna get that happily ever after wish".

"Haha, yeah it would seem so!" Gray chuckled along with him.

Gray soon found out that Natsu had opened up to Lucy and Loke over their break about his incident and had done exactly what he'd said to Gray he would do. Igneel had called the police and Sting had been arrested for rape and domestic abuse. Natsu and Rogue even became slight friends after being paired together in Geography for a project. Gray had actually broken down at the beginning of their vacation and had spilled to Lyon what had happened. Lyon had promised him that things would be fine - they enjoyed their vacation and then Lyon had proposed to him on the pier during the sunset of their final day.

As he sat in class holding Lyon's hand beneath the desk and only half paying attention to his History lesson, he thought about how things had turned out alright in the end for everyone. He'd heard so many typical stories of how one-sided loves ended in suicides or abusive relationships ended in cold blooded murder. But for him, he'd been able to get his friend back just fine, and his boyfriend had turned into his fiancé.

And at that moment in time, he couldn't have been happier.